On medical prescription, patients over 3 years of age can consult a psychologist listed on the "MonPsy" website, and benefit from an assessment interview and seven follow-up sessions per year, reimbursed by health insurance.
The patient leaves without paying anything to the practitioner: 60% of the costs are covered by the Sécu, and 40% by the complementary health.
The "MonPsy" device is aimed at French people suffering from depressive and anxiety disorders of "mild to moderate" intensity, according to the platform.
But in the event of “suicidal risks” or appearances of “more severe” disorders, the ministry specifies that the patient will be “directed towards more specialized care”.
About 1,000 "volunteer" practitioners will be referenced on the monpsy.sante.gouv.fr site at the time of the launch, said Health Minister Olivier Véran in mid-March.
The reform is not unanimous in the profession.
A column published on March 29 in the daily Le Monde calls for a boycott of the "MonPsy" device, described as "window dressing".
The signatories, more than 2,000 according to the collective of psychologists, consider among other things that the device excludes the most serious disorders and consider the prices insufficient (40 euros for the first session, and 30 euros for the following ones).
The Ministry of Health indicates that the cost calculation took into account the average duration of a session, estimated at "about 40 minutes".
In September, Emmanuel Macron called for more resources in the sector.
"The pandemic has revealed the importance of the subject of mental health," said the head of state at the time of the announcement of the device.
© 2022 AFP